Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Book a Golf Vacation and Attend a Hot Air Balloon Festival

I know of a good reason to plan a Gulf Shores & Orange Beach golf vacation in mid-June: the 8th Annual Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival, scheduled for June 15th to 17th in Foley. It’s an excellent event to attend if you have a family—or if you simply enjoy Gulf Coast festivals.

Here’s a good festival/golf plan: The balloons are in the air at 6 a.m., so show up nice and early to catch a glimpse of the 50 brightly colored balloons floating in the morning sky. Then head off to a morning round of golf—Glenlakes Golf Club is close (also in Foley) but all of the area’s nine signature golf courses are easy enough to get to.

The great thing about the Hot Air Balloon Festival is it’s an all-day event, so when that round of golf is done you can head back for the live music, food, arts and crafts village, and the Disc-Connected K9’s World Famous Frisbee Dogs—these dogs alone are worth the trip back to the festival. And if you’re there with the family, take the kids to the kid’s village and check out Babin’s House of Party, Alligator Alley exhibits, and other fun activities. Stay for sunset and watch the hot air balloons make their return.

You have to see it for yourself to really appreciate it, so go ahead and book that Gulf Shores vacation package.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

What’s Your Favorite Group for Golf?

I’ve played golf with many different group types—including work groups. I’ve actually played several times with people from work (during conferences and company gatherings), thus I can say from experience that golf can help bring any group together in camaraderie.

Then there are those much-loved, much-needed buddies golf vacations on the Gulf. Just a group of friends, a condo on the beach, and several days of golf—the group golf experience doesn’t get much better than this.

But I think it might come close to as good this summer, when a large group of family and friends will gather on the beach for a wedding between two people who actually met at the beach. That part of the story is good enough, but it certainly doesn’t hurt that a group of us will be hitting the golf course the day before the wedding. And a large group it will be—several relatives, friends, and friends of friends will be participating in this “mini-tournament.”

Whatever the group, making Gulf Shores & Orange Beach the golf location is a must. You can’t beat the beauty of the area’s nine signature golf courses. And with a variety of accommodation options—from hotels to beach houses to luxurious Gulf-front condos—it’s easy to find a golf vacation deal to meet the needs of all golfers in the group.